


Super Smash: Sudden Death

by reamca



Category: Super Smash Brothers
Genre: Gen, Killing Game (Dangan Ronpa), Murder Mystery, Smash Mansion
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:07:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27107686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reamca/pseuds/reamca
Summary: It is a day of celebration at the Smash Mansion! The anniversary of one's arrival to the brawl is a joyous occasion. However, when someone is murdered and twenty others are trapped in the mansion, a day of happiness quickly turns into that of dread. True natures are revealed, lives are lost. Betrayal and trickery is inevitable.Will your favorite smasher survive? Can they escape the mansion? Who locked them in there in the first place? The answers to your questions may be revealed in Super Smash - Sudden Death.(Originally on Wattpad, updated version here!)
Relationships: Link/Dark Pit
Kudos: 7





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I originally posted this on Wattpad before moving to Ao3, so I thought I may as well post it here because I kinda like it, y'know?

"Why exactly do we care about Pac-Man, anyways?"

"Roy, if it were your arrival anniversary, wouldn't you want people to come?" Robin replied with a question of her own.

"Maybe the first time." Roy shrugged. "But why does he have to have a party every year? It's not like it's his birthday (which he also has a party for, every year)."

Robin sighed. "Maybe the guy just likes getting the gang together outside of tournaments. Has that thought ever crossed your mind? That there's more to us than just fighting?"

Roy thought for a moment. "No."

"Of course it hasn't." Robin sighed, shaking her head. "You and Ike and those other guys are all the same. Violence, violence, violence."

"Yeah, well, at least we're getting stronger and bettering ourselves." Roy said, stopping and crossing his arms. "All you do is sit around and read."

Robin stopped as well, turning around to face Roy with a hint of anger in her expression. "I'm sorry? I'm studying spells and incantations, not just 'reading.' There can be more to fighting than just brute force, Roy. There can be a little creativity. You should try it sometime."

Roy chuckled, drawing his sword. "You wanna see some creativity, huh? I'll show you just how creative I can be!"

Robin smirked, producing a tome from her robes. "Bring it on! I can't wait to see your mastery of the art of flailing your sword about!"

Roy charged at Robin, sword gripped tight. Just as he was about to strike his first blow, however, Robin held up a hand. "Stop," she ordered. "Quiet."

"Really?" Roy sighed unhappily. "You can't just do that to me!"

"Shut up!" Robin glared at him. "Listen."

Roy rolled his eyes, but remained silent. After a moment, he began to hear something. It sounded like...a galloping horse.

Which, it turned out, was exactly what the sound was. A beautiful chestnut steed with a pure white mane emerged from the forest onto the path that Roy and Robin were taking to the Smash Mansion where PAC-MAN's party was being held. The horse was carrying Link and Zelda, the former pulling the reigns so his horse would slow to a halt beside the two pedestrians.

"Ah, Zelda," Roy nodded to Link, before turning and bowing to the actual Zelda. "Your Highness."

Zelda giggled as Link rolled his eyes. "Hello, Roy," she said.

"Idiot," Robin breathed, slapping her companion. "That's Link. Your princess's name is Zelda."

"Ah! Forgive me!" Roy cried, throwing himself in the dirt.

"You're forgiven," Zelda laughed. "This happens all the time. We're used to it."

Link grumbled something to himself.

"Well, please excuse us," Zelda said to Robin. "A princess must never be late to a party!"

"Of course," Robin smiled, bowing her head.

"Hyah!" Link shouted, spurring his horse into action. They sped away, leaving a new layer of dirt on Roy, who was still laying on the ground.

As they rode away, Zelda frowned. "You were being very rude back there, Link. You'd best not act like this all day."

"Well excuse me, Princess," Link grouched. "After so many years of being around these people, one would think they'd get our names straight by now."

"Calm yourself, Link. There's no need to get angry over such a matter."

Link took a deep breath. "You're right, as always. I just—"

Link would have finished his thought, but they were almost ran over by a bus that had sped up swiftly yet relatively silently behind them. The bus pulled up beside them, and Bowser could be seen through the window waving gleefully.

"Woah, watch it!" Link yelled, steadying his steed's path.

"Sorry, bub!" Bowser yelled back before stepping on the gas, sending the bus flying further down the road ahead of Link and Zelda.

"B-B-Bowser, would it-a kill you to slow down just a bit?" Luigi asked timidly from his seat, grasping at his seat belt.

"Would it kill you to let me drive in peace!?" Bowser growled, glaring back at Mario's mustachioed brother.

"M-m-m-m-maybe!" Luigi squeaked.

"Don't worry, Luigi," Daisy, who was sitting next to him, said. "If we do crash, we can just use my Toad as an airbag!"

"What!?" the Toad screeched.

"Just kidding!" Daisy giggled.

"That's not a bad idea, actually." Peach thought out loud.

"Watch it..." her Toad warned.

"Oh, silly Toad," Mario chuckled. "Peach would-a never do that to you."

"Don't be so sure." Peach mumbled.

"What was that?" Toad asked.

"Nothing." Peach answered quickly. "Say, Mario, why'd you bring that case? That's your medical kit, isn't it?" she asked, trying to change the subject.

"This?" Mario asked, glancing at a black briefcase under Luigi's seat in front of him. "Oh, you know. Just in case."

"In case what? Surely you don't think anything's going to happen."

"You know how these parties can-a get, Peach. First you're all having a good ol' time and then boom-a! Incineroar is laying on the floor, bleeding out, a large-a hunk of metal sticking out of his chest."

"That...was oddly specific..." Daisy said.

Suddenly, the bus veered to the right, throwing its passengers tumbling to the left (except Luigi, of course).

"Get off the road, luddites!" Bowser roared.

Those 'luddites' happened to be Pit, Dark Pit, and Palutena.

"My, what a crude term!" Palutena commented.

"Wow, was that the Bowser Bus!?" Pit exclaimed. "So cool!"

"It really doesn't take much to impress you, does it?" Dark Pit asked.

"Nope!" Pit replied.

"And that's why we're going to go see Pac-Man," Dark Pit sighed. "Because precious little Pit wanted to. Why are we walking to the mansion, anyways?"

"Well, you can't fly now, can you?" Palutena asked.

"No, but vehicles exist." Dark Pit pointed out. "We were almost run over by one just now."

"If you can't read, then how do you expect to drive?"

Pit shook his head. "Um, no, Lady Palutena, I'm the one who can't read, remember?"

"Ah, yes, of course," the goddess nodded. "Anyways Pittoo, you need the exercise."

"I need the—what?"

"Lady Plautena is right," Pit told his clone. "All you ever do is lay around all day and listen to your emo music and cry about how your existence is so meaningless and whatnot."

Pittoo glared at Pit. "I am going to skin you," he announced.

Palutena shook her head. "That will have to wait; we're almost there. Look," she pointed forward at a rather magnificent building in a clearing: the Smash Mansion.

"Oh, wow!" Pit cried. "I'm so excited!"

"Why?" Pittoo asked. "You've seen it a hundred times."

"C'mon, Pittoo! I'll race ya!" Pit said, and sprinted towards the mansion.

"No."

Meanwhile, the Bowser Bus was unloading in front of the large double doors. Mario triple jumped out of the bus, crying "The Mario Party has arrived!"

"Wow." Falco said, emerging from the mansion. "What a cool, original joke. I'm being facetious, by the way, in case you couldn't tell."

"Don't-a worry, I got-a the message loud and-a clear..." Mario shook his head.

Luigi was stepping out of the bus, sweating immensely. "I think I'll just-a walk home..." he muttered.

"Poyo!" a little pink ball said, rolling up next to Luigi, who leapt up into the air, screeching in fear. 

"Uh...Luigi? It's just Kirby," Falco said.

"Huh? O-oh...yes, I-I knew-a that." Luigi said, clutching his chest.

"Hi~!" Kirby waved up at Luigi, who waved back.

Suddenly, a roaring could be heard from the sky. Everyone looked up to see a Charizard blazing toward the ground, stopping just short of slamming into the dirt. It settled down softly enough, and Leaf slid off of its back, waving at everyone.

Luigi had passed out as soon as he had heard the roaring.

"Wow, what an entrance!" Pit gushed, skidding to a halt beside Charizard.

"Somebody help-a me get-a my brother inside." Mario was saying as the mansion doors opened again. This time, Lucas ran out, followed more slowly by Samus.

Samus let out a sigh of relief. "I thought that roaring was Ridley," she explained. "I figured things were about to get messy."

"Hi, Leaf!" Lucas said, running up to the Pokémon Trainer.

"Hey, what's up, Lucas?" she replied.

"Um, can I play with your Pokémon for a bit?" the small boy asked.

Leaf smiled, handing over three red and white capsules. "They've missed their playmate," she told him.

As everyone began to mingle outside, Link and Zelda rode up on their horse. Link hopped off, then helped his princess down.

"That's a mighty fine horse you've got there." Pitto said, walking up to Link.

Link turned to face the other boy. "Thanks, Epona is pretty great. You like horses?"

'Not usually,' is what Dark Pit wanted to say, but he didn't. "Can't say I've had much experience with them."

"Well, that's something that we'll—" Link began, but was interrupted by the sound of a portal opening and closing. Ganondorf had arrived. "Hold on, there's something I need to take care of..." Link said, walking off towards the newest arrival.

"Screw you, Ganon..." Pittoo growled.

"Ganondorf, what are you doing here?" Link asked, stepping between the Gerudo and Zelda.

"Why the hostility, boy?" Ganon asked. "I've only come to join in the festivities, nothing more."

Link frowned. "You'd best keep it that way."

"Ganondorf." a voice said, prompting the Gerudo to turn around.

"Aha, Mewtwo." Ganon smiled. "Something finally managed to make you crawl out of your hiding hole? I would never have suspected Pac-Man, of all beings, to pique your interest."

Mewtwo chuckled. "I felt you would be here, old friend. We have some catching up to do."

"Thank the gods!" Roy gasped loudly, collapsing onto the short staircase that led up to the entrance of the mansion. "I thought we'd never make it."

"And you wouldn't have, if I hadn't stopped you from walking into that bear's den," Robin reminded him.

"It's all well and good that the guests have arrived..." Peach began, "but where exactly is our host?"

And right on cue, Pac-Man emerged from the mansion doors, a huge smile plastered on his face. "Hehe, sorry guys. I've been in the bathroom for quite a bit. Must have been something I consumed."

"You eat ghosts and pellets of light, I don't understand how you don't have more stomach issues." Falco drawled.

"You know, I wonder the same exact thing sometimes!" Pac-Man said gleefully. "But let's not dawdle out here. Come on inside everyone!"

Everyone did as commanded. As Peach walked in, she turned back to the two Toads. "You guys stay out here and guard the bus, okay?"

"What? I'm starvin' though!" Toad whined.

"I'll send Luigi out later with some plates for you."

"Ugh. Fine!" Toad gave up, throwing his hands in the air and turning back around, heading towards the bus.

As they all headed down the entrance corridor, the front doors slammed shut, and everyone looked back to see a frightening sight: Villager, standing there staring silently at them all. Luigi, who had just come to, fainted again.

"Well, uh, if that's everyone...let's start dinner, then, shall we?" Pac-Man suggested.

Dinner included, but was not limited to, spaghetti, some odd red mushrooms that Roy swore made him grow bigger, poképuffs (for the Pokémon, of course!), and to Pit's dismay, some form of eggplant.

Pac-Man, sitting at the head of the table, conversed joyously with his friends around him, stopping often to take a drink something from his special anniversary glass. "...and, of course, that's what got me hooked on eating ghosts. I'm trying to quit, I really am..."

"I'd like to make a toast to Pac-Man." Palutena announced, standing up. "For many years, he's provided a refreshing and interesting uniqueness to our community. Here's to many more."

"Aw, thank you so much, Palutena!" Pac-Man said, teary-eyed, before taking a drink with everyone else. "Here, let me come over there and give you a hug..."

"Ah, that won't be necessary..." Palutena tried, realizing she had made a mistake, but it was too late: Pac-Man had already started on his way around the table.

And he might have made it to his destination, too, if he hadn't have collapsed.

Everyone gasped, and Mario ran to the fallen yellow orb man. All the guests gathered around to see what had happened.

Mario looked up, confusion in his eyes.

"What's wrong, Mario?" Peach asked. "Is he all right?"

Mario shook his head slowly. "Pac-Man has-a been poisoned...he is dead."


	2. Chapter 2

Blue Toad was spray painting obscene images on the Bowser Bus while Red Toad paced in front of the mansion. "Guard the bus..." he was muttering. "Who's gonna be all the way out here to steal it? Who in their right mind would steal that thing in the first place!?"

"Hey man," Blue Toad shrugged, turning from his artwork. "At least you get to be away from the princess for a while."

"That's true..." Red Toad conceded. "I guess it's not that bad. At least the weather's nice."

Suddenly, the sky turned black as dark clouds swarmed quickly over the forest. With a bolt of lightning and a crash of thunder, rain began pouring down.

"That was unfortunate...c'mon, let's get inside!" Red Toad yelled through the storm.

Blue Toad nodded and began running towards the mansion with his compatriot. As they reached the stairs, however, some kind of barrier rose out of the ground, blocking the door.

"Aw, come on!" Blue Toad cried.

"We could try to climb through the windows!" Red Toad suggested. As soon as he said that, the windows were covered up with more barriers. "Well...at least—"

"Don't! Don't say another word!" Blue Toad screamed.

***

"P-p-p-p-p-p-poison!?" Luigi screeched, quaking in fear.

"How do you know it's poison?" Falco asked Mario skeptically.

"Seeing as-a Pac-Man's skin...or shell, or whatever it is...has-a turned-a green and he was foaming at-a the mouth...well, I took an educated-a guess."

"If his food was poisoned, though..." Samus thought aloud, "then why is no one else sick?"

"It might not have been the food." Zelda suggested. "He was drinking awfully heavily, don't you think?"

"We were all drinking the same thing, though!" Bowser countered.

"Yes, but Pac-Man was drinking out of a different glass." Zelda said, grabbing the cup Pac-Man was drinking from. "This weird golden goblet thing." She handed it to Mario.

"I'll inspect it, but someone should-a call the authorities." Mario said.

"On it!" Lucas said quickly, and ran out of the dining hall.

"I'll go with him..." Leaf said, walking after him. "He looked upset."

"I figure anyone would be, after watching somebody die." Falco said.

"I'm...I'm going to go get my Toad." Daisy announced, walking swiftly from the room. She looked sick.

"Who could have done something like this?" Palutena muttered, shaking her head in disgust.

"Me, probably." Dark Pit said. "Gods, that guy was annoying."

"What was that, boy?" Ganondorf rumbled, standing up from his chair. "Did you just admit to murdering Pac-Man?"

"No, of course not," Pittoo replied. "We don't know for sure he was murdered anyways. I mean, Mario isn't even certain it was poison."

"It-a definitely was. There's-a still traces of it in this-a cup." Mario announced.

"Fine. But no, it wasn't me." Pittoo declared, as if his statement cleared him of all suspicion.

Ganon crossed his arms, but he sat back down.

After a few moments of silence, everyone jumped, especially Luigi, when a scream echoed through the halls.

"That sounded like Daisy!" Roy said, running to find the source of the commotion. "I'm coming, m'lady, do not fret!"

"Who could ever fret when you're around..." Robin sighed, chasing after him.

They all ran into the lobby, where Daisy was found staring at the mansion entrance. However, where the doors should have been, there was now a large sheet of metal bolted to the wall.

Leaf and Lucas ran into the lobby. "We heard screami—oh wow..." Lucas gasped.

"The phones won't work." Leaf announced.

"Oh, I get it now!" Pit exclaimed. "This is just another one of my weird dreams. None of this is really happening, right Lady Palutena?"

Palutena shook her head. "I'm afraid this is all too real, Pit."

Bowser was standing in front of the metal barrier, staring it down. "This is simple. I can just melt it with my fire breath."

"I would not advise that," an electronic voice called from across the lobby. "It would only reflect back at you, after all."

"You what?" Bowser growled, turning around to face the newcomer.

The electronic voice belonged to none other than R.O.B., who stood at the head of the main staircase.

"When did Mega Man get here...?" Roy asked.

"Fool!" R.O.B. cried, although one really couldn't tell with his monotone robotic voice. "I am not Mega Man. I am R.O.B.!"

"As in...Robert?" Link asked. "Anyone know a Robert?" he asked the others, and they shook their heads. "We don't know any Roberts," he called back to R.O.B., "but someone just died, so...what are you doing here?"

"I am here," R.O.B. began, "to keep you all in order. I am here to make sure no one puts a toe, claw, or wing out of line."

Bowser clomped across the lobby floor towards the staircase. "What happens if my claw slips?" he snarled up at the robot.

"You will be exterminated." R.O.B. replied simply.

This statement didn't seem to phase Bowser, but he did not continue up the stairs.

R.O.B., satisfied that all attention was on him now, continued. "You are all here for a reason."

"Yeah?" Falco called. "What reason would that be?"

"To kill each other."

"Woah, this is starting to turn out too much like a certain game series I like..." Lucas shuddered.

"Uh...why, exactly, would we want to kill each other?" Samus asked.

"You will all perish soon enough, anyways." R.O.B. said. "But to pass the time until that point, would it not be fun to take part in a magnificent killing game filled with terribly bleak situations, hopeless romantic experiences, and deliciously surprising betrayals?"

"No!" everyone yelled, except Villager, who never spoke. He probably had no qualms with being in a killing game, though.

""Very well," R.O.B. said, rolling backwards towards the wall. A section of the wall opened up, and he went inside. "Be boring."

The wall closed with a thud, which echoed throughout the mansion. Everyone remained silent, staring at the wall and contemplating what had just happened. Bowser, apparently not wishing to contemplate for long, let out an ear-piercing roar and began to charge at the large metal sheet.

"Get out of the way!" Ganondorf yelled, grabbing Lucas and Leaf, hauling them to safety.

Anyone who was in danger managed to get out of Bowser's way as he charged towards the barrier. Just before he hit it, he withdrew his head into his shell and slammed into the wall. He fell backwards and didn't get up, most likely unconscious. His attack didn't even make a dent.

"Your attempts to escape are fruitless," R.O.B.'s voice echoed through the mansion, as if it came from the very walls.

Mewtwo was gazing at the barrier. "Perhaps it would be best if we did not try to escape, just for the time being. We should conserve our strength until we know exactly what is going on."

"I agree..." Ganondorf nodded. "We should probably send someone down to the kitchen to see how much food there is as well."

"What are you guys on about?" Falco asked. "You're acting like this isn't some kind of elaborate prank. We're not gonna be here forever."

"You are a fool to think that is the case at this point," Mewtwo told him.

"Whoever's keeping us here definitely isn't doing so as a prank," Palutena added. "Someone is dead."

"Okay...so it's a sick, twisted prank," Falco argued.

"Um!" Pit interrupted. "I volunteer to go check the kitchen!"

"Ooh, me too!" Roy raised his hand.

Robin shook her head. "No, Roy. If you go down there, all of the food will be gone within the next five minutes."

Palutena turned to Dark Pit. "You go with Pit to the kitchen, okay? Make sure he doesn't eat all of the food either."

"I'm not his babysitter."

"Yeah, I don't need a babysitter!" Pit added.

"You will go," Palutena ordered.

"Fiiine," Pittoo groaned. As he turned to go with Pit to the kitchen, he spotted Link at Zelda's side. "Hey, um, do you wanna come with me? Er, us? With us?"

Link glanced at Zelda, frowning. "Ah, sorry, I should probably stay up here with Zelda..."

Zelda sighed, pushing Link towards Pittoo. "Oh, Link, I'm fine. You can go."

"Princess, I don't think you ought to—"

"I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself," Zelda assured him. "Stop worrying."

"Very well," Link nodded, turning to follow Pit.

Zelda glanced at Dark Pit and shook her head. "Try to get that boy to smile, would you?"

Pittoo nodded, trying to hide his own smile. He turned around and ran to catch up with the other two.

Zelda turned back to the others. She saw Mario examining Bowser and walked over to him. "Is he going to be all right?"

Mario looked up. "I'm-a sure he'll be fine. Trust me, he's-a been through much-a worse than this."

"With the amount of times Mario's stomped on his head, I'm sure this is nothing to him," Peach said, patting the plumber's shoulder.

Meanwhile, Palutena, Mewtwo, Samus, Ganondorf, and Falco were huddled together, discussing any possible solutions to their predicament.

"It wouldn't be worth it to check the back doors, would it?" Samus asked.

Palutena shrugged. "Probably not, but we might as well. Our captor may have slipped up."

"I can do that," Falco said. "It beats sitting around here and doing nothing." He began on his way to the back of the mansion, beckoning Kirby. "Yo, Kirbs. Wanna go check something with me?"

"Hup!" Kirby chirped, running after him.

"We should probably search the rest of the mansion," Ganondorf said. "If not for a way out, then anything that might point us to who is doing this or why."

"Good idea," Samus said. "I'll get some people together and do that."

"Can somebody help-a me move Bowser to a guest bedroom?" Mario questioned.

"All of the bedrooms are upstairs, though..." Roy said.

Robin pushed Roy aside. "It's not like you have to carry him up there. We can just...magic him up!"

Mewtwo shook his head. "No, we cannot. None of our powers are working."

"Huh?" Robin cried, attempting to use her magic, but it didn't work.

"I've been trying to use my powers since...Pac-Man..." Palutena trailed off.

"Well...at least help-a me move him to some better lighting." Mario said.

Roy nodded. "How 'bout the middle up the lobby, under that chandelier. Plenty of light there."

Luigi began to panic again. "Oh, n-n-no, not under the chandelier! Wh-what if it-a falls?"

"It's not going to fall, Luigi." Peach told him. "You need to calm down."

"C-c-c-c-calm down!?" Luigi repeated incredulously. "H-have you been-a blind and-a deaf this p-past hour?"

***

"Wow!" Pit exclaimed, spinning around in the kitchen. "It's so big! I'm in heaven!"

"I'm in hell..." Dark Pit sighed.

Link was checking out the refrigerator. "I'd say there's enough food in here to feed us all for a month."

Pit rushed over beside him. "You think so? That looks more like a week's worth to me..."

Link walked closer to Dark Pit. "How much does he usually eat?"

"As much as he possibly can..." Pittoo shuddered.

Link crossed his arms. "Pit, I'm afraid you're going to have to go on a diet for a little while."

"I'm gonna what!?"

Pittoo grabbed Pit's shoulders before the angel could freak out. "Link's right. There's no telling how long we're going to be stuck here, and everyone needs to eat. Except for maybe Mewtwo, but he doesn't matter."

"But...but...but..." Pit looked like he was about to cry.

Dark Pit let out a long breath. "Listen, I'll let you grab anything you want to eat right now, but we have to make sure everyone has enough."

"Really!?" Pit didn't wait for a confirmation before he began running all around the kitchen, grabbing anything he could carry.

Pittoo turned back to Link, but he had vanished. The kitchen door was swinging back and forth as if someone had just gone through it. Pittoo began out of the kitchen, but the sound of his name being called out by Pit made him halt. He turned his head, hand on the door. "What?"

"Why do you act so differently around him?"

"Excuse me?"

"Link. Whenever you're around him, you seem...well, you act like you don't want to die nearly as much as usual."

Pittoo stared at Pit for a moment. "I..." he hesitated.

"Yeah?"

Dark Pit shook his head and continued out of the kitchen. He spotted Link rounding a corner and ran after him. "Hey, wait up," he called. "Where are you going?"

Link stopped, but only for a moment. "I was off to deliver news of our findings. Why?"

"Oh, I just thought you might want to wait on us, is all."

"Ah. Sorry."

"Don't be. Let's go."

"You're not waiting for Pit?"

"Nah."

***

Mario scratched his head. "I'm-a gonna have to go get-a my briefcase. There's a scratch on Bowser's head that I'm-a concerned about. Would you mind-a watching him while I'm-a gone?"

Zelda looked around. "Me? Of course. Where'd Luigi and Daisy go? I thought they were helping you."

"Samus and Peach needed them for something." Mario said as he headed off towards the dining room. "Thank-a you!"

"No problem..." Zelda said, glancing down at Bowser's unconscious figure. He didn't look nearly as ferocious up close as she had come to imagine him.

***

Link and Pittoo were nearly back to the lobby. As they walked up a set of stairs, Pittoo broke the silence. "Hey, uh, I now we don't talk that much, but I was wondering...after we get out of here, do you want to like, hang out? Or something?"

Link blinked. "Uh, sure. I might not—wait a minute...do you see that?"

"What? The chandelier? It looks like it's shaking."

"And there's people directly under it...wait a minute...ZELDA! GET OUT OF THE WAY! IT'S GOING TO FALL!"

Zelda looked up at the sound of Link's shout. "Link...? What's going o—!"

A clawed hand grabbed Zelda and pushed her away roughly. She fell backwards, just barely out of the way before the chandelier came crashing down where she had been standing only moments before.

"AAAH!" she screamed, crawling away from the mass of broken chandelier.

"Princess, are you all right?" Link asked, concern ablaze in his eyes as he ran up to her.

"I...yes...I..." Zelda said between deep breaths. "Bowser...he saved...me..."

Pittoo was staring in horror at the chandelier, or, more accurately, what was underneath it: the mangled, bloody corpse Zelda's savior.

The King Koopa's final act was saving a princess's life.


	3. Chapter 3

"Congratulations!" R.O.B. cheered, appearing at the head of the staircase once again. "The first murder has occurred!"

By this time everyone had gathered around the fallen chandelier and Bowser's body. The initial shock had worn off, and only disbelief remained. How could such a powerful individual meet his end in such a manner?

"Murder...?" Leaf whispered. "He was...murdered?"

"It can't be," Falco said. "The chandelier just fell, that's all. It's pretty old, so..." he trialed off, knowing his argument was futile.

R.O.B. cackled, or tried his best to, anyways. Monotonous robot voices are not the greatest at conveying any sort of emotion, you see. "It most definitely was a murder. Cold-blooded, premeditated murder. I have eyes all over this mansion, so I witnessed the entire process fold out."

Lucas spoke up, terror in his eyes as he gazed up at R.O.B. "We're not gonna have to have a...a trial, or anything are we?"

"A trial?" R.O.B. asked. "No, you all will just be continuing with your daily lives, knowing that you have a ruthless killer among your numbers. But thank you for the suggestion...I will have to keep that in mind for the next time I play this fun game."

"How do we know you're not the one who killed him?" Samus asked.

"It would be against the rules," R.O.B. replied matter-of-factly. "I am not a participant in this game like you. I am just a spectator." He turned around and vanished into the wall once more.

Everyone was quiet, either staring at the mess of chandelier debris that covered Bowser's body, or trying their hardest to look away. Ganondorf was the one to break the silence when he cleared his throat.

"Right, we'll need to establish alibis, and—"

Falco shook his head. "Wait, what? You're not telling me you actually believe what the robot said. He has to be the one that killed Bowser!"

Ganondorf sighed. "You're...probably correct...but there's always a chance..."

Mewtwo continued when Ganon trailed off. "If there is a possibility that one of us murdered Bowser, then we need to investigate."

Peach looked like she was about to cry. "But why? If one of you all...did this...I think I'd prefer not to know."

"If they can kill once so easily, then they are capable of doing it again," Mewtwo said. "We must prevent them from doing so."

***

The only piece of physical evidence found after a day of investigation was a knife lodged in the wall. It was the general consensus that the killer had thrown the knife from the balcony on the second floor and cut through the rope that had secured the chandelier.

"Well, this murder seems to have been planned." Samus confirmed. "The culprit would have had to have gone down to the kitchen, which is the only place in this building with knives in it, then carried said knife around all day until that moment presented itself."

"Yes yes, but I have a question," Daisy said. "Why exactly was the chandelier held up with only that measly rope. Isn't that kinda dangerous? Like, I'm surprised it hasn't fallen before now."

Peach shuddered. "That would have been my fault, I suppose. I was part of the decoration crew for the mansion a few years back when we redesigned, remember? I thought it looked pretty..."

"L-looks over-a safety?" Luigi chuckled. "Th-that's so like-a you..."

"What's that supposed to mean!?"

"Anyways, it doesn't really matter whose design choice it was, does it?" Robin said, attempting to get back on track. "We just need to know who's been down in the kitchen today."

"That would be me, Pit, and Dark Pit," Link said. "And, of course, whoever had been preparing the food earlier today."

"Who was that?" Leaf asked.

"Pac-Man, probably," Palutena suggested. "Although he usually let his ghosts do most of his work."

"Okay, but none of this helps!" Robin said, frustrated. "The three people that have been in that kitchen and are still alive couldn't have possibly done it. Seeing as, of course, they were only just coming back up from the kitchen when the murderer threw the knife from the second floor."

"Well...that wasn't everyone that has been down there today, actually." Samus admitted. "Falco, Lucas, Kirby and I were here a while before anyone else arrived, so PAC-MAN decided to give us a grand tour of the place."

"Which was kinda pointless seeing as we've all been here countless times..." Falco added.

"Anyways, we briefly went by the kitchens during the tour," Samus concluded.

"Okay...but did any of you actually go into the kitchen?" Robin asked impatiently.

"One of us did..." Falco turned to the small pink blob beside him.

Everyone followed suit and looked to Kirby.

"Poyo?"

They all shook their heads.

"There's no way," Falco agreed.

"Back to square one..." Zelda sighed.

"I'm sick of this!" Peach declared. "It's getting late, and I've no intention of doubting my friends any longer. I am going to bed!" she concluded, and began marching up to the second floor.

"I'm with Peach..." Daisy said, following after the other princess.

Everyone else began towards the staircase. The second floor was where all the guest bedrooms were located.

"What are we to do about-a the body?" Mario asked quietly. He seemed to have been the most affected by the death of the Koopa king.

"I hate to say this, but we should probably leave it be." Ganondorf said, patting the plumber on the shoulder. "Let the robot dispose of it."

"Just leave it to me!" R.O.B.'s voice echoed through the mansion.

Zelda was walking up the stairs close to Link. "What did Pittoo want with you?" she asked.

Link blinked. "I don't really know. He just told me he'd like to hang out more when we get out of this mess."

Zelda giggled as they reached the top of the stairs.

"What?" Link asked.

"You really are thick sometimes, you know?" Zelda sighed. "I think that boy really likes you."

"..ah.."

"You two would be cute togeth—"

"I think you should have a guard posted at your door," Link interrupted quickly. "That guard being me, of course. I don't trust anyone else to do it."

"Link! What has gotten into you? We've known these people forever. No one is going to hurt me."

"Really? Then why is it that you happened to be under that chandelier when someone threw a knife through the rope keeping it suspended?"

"Link, I don't think it's necessary..."

"That's really too bad, isn't it?" Link asked. "Because I'm doing it whether you want me to or not."

***

"I don't understand!" Link was very confused. "I stood right in front of your door all night, yet still this happened?"

"Link, it's not your fault," Zelda was saying. "He probably snuck in our rooms through the vents or something."

Luigi was staring down at the staircase, wishing more than anything to be woken up from this nightmare.

"What's up with Luigi?" Lucas asked Leaf.

"His is 'Going Down Stairs'..."

Everyone had woken up to a pain in the back of their necks and a letter waiting for them taped on the inside of their doors. That pain, according to the letters, was actually some sort of devise that would inject poison into their bloodstream if they did a certain action (also listed on their letters).

There had been a vote to reveal their 'forbidden actions' or not, but most had voted against it. Except for Luigi, who had squealed "I can't-a go downstairs!" when Daisy was trying to pull him down for breakfast.

Pit walked up to Link. "Hey, have you seen Pittoo?"

"Oh, uh, no, I haven't." Link said. "Sorry..."

"I saw him earlier, but now it's like he's avoiding me..."

Mario was downstairs, gazing at the place where Bowser's corpse had been the day before.

Suddenly, there was pushing and yelling at the head of the crowd gathered at the top of the staircase. "Get off of me!" Peach screamed, pushing Daisy away from her.

"What are you talking about?" Daisy asked as she steadied herself. "I never even touched you!"

Luigi glanced at the staircase again, but attempted to push himself between the two fighting girls. "L-ladies, please stop-a this—"

"Back off Luigi, this is between the princesses!" Daisy said, pushing Luigi away. He staggered, but narrowly avoided falling down the stairs. "You've been cold to me this whole time, and now you start pushing me around? That's not very lady-like, Peach."

"If you didn't have to try to push me down these stairs in all your impatience, we wouldn't be having a problem right now!"

"Ladies, can we not settle this in a civilized manner?" Palutena said, striding gracefully to stand between the two princesses.

"No, we can't!" Daisy whined. "She has it out for me!"

"She has it out for me!"

The two lunged at each other, and Palutena dived out of the way. The girls seemed to be fighting to the death, with Daisy gaining a bloody nose and Peach a black eye. Eventually, with Palutena restraining Peach, and Zelda holding Daisy back, they began to settle down, although they still cast dirty glances at each other.

In all the chaos, however, no one had noticed Luigi being pushed down the stairs.


	4. Chapter 4

Mario and Peach were not seen for the rest of the day, both having gone to their rooms and locked their doors. Daisy disappeared for a while, but could occasionally be found sulking around the staircase, staring down to the bottom. No one dared go near Luigi's body at the foot of the stairs after his brother mournfully yet dutifully examined his body (save Mewtwo and Samus, who seemed not to have been fazed by any of the recent happenings), so the downstairs portion of the mansion remained mostly unused that day. Even Pit claimed he wasn't hungry enough to go down to the kitchens.

Link remained glued to Zelda whenever possible, much to her disliking. Even though Luigi's death seemed to have been an accident, whatever was left of Link's trust in the others had been diminished to zero. Unable to shake him off, Zelda retreated to her room and ordered him to stay outside.

Palutena, Ganondorf, Mewtwo, Samus, and Falco gathered in Mewtwo's room for a "secret meeting," or so Palutena told Pit. Being the curious angel he was, Pit wanted to try to listen in on the meeting, but he had more important items to attend to; Dark Pit hadn't shown himself all day, and Pit needed to find out why.

Meanwhile, Leaf was in her room, staring at her dresser, which had three pokéballs sitting on top of it. She had the letter she had discovered that morning in her hands, and she kept glancing down at it every so often. She was more angry than anything else; the letter forbade her from summoning any of her Pokémon. However, she wasn't the one that would be punished if she disobeyed. Her Pokémon would receive the lethal dose of poison if they were to leave their capsules.

This was unfortunate for a couple of reasons. For one, whenever her Pokémon were around her, Leaf felt at peace. They were like a safety blanket of sorts that she brought everywhere she went. Leaf was an anxious soul, and being around several people at a time or being in uncomfortable situations (both of which were conveniently happening at the same time) terrified her. Her Pokémon helped with that, they calmed her down. But now, even though they were merely two feet away, Leaf wasn't able to see them. They could have also been useful for finding a way to escape. Of course, that was likely the reason they were forbidden. And then again, if Bowser couldn't even dent the sheet of metal that barred the exits...

A knock on her door distracted her from her thoughts. Leaf stood up and was about to grab her pokéballs, but thought better of it. She walked to the door and opened it, surprised not to see anyone immediately. When she looked down, however, she discovered Lucas gazing up at her with anxious eyes. "Lucas, what's wrong?" she asked, kneeling down so she could be level with the small boy.

"Um..." Lucas began, glancing down at his feet. "I wanted a glass of water, but..." he trailed off as his eyes wandered over to the staircase.

Leaf understood immediately. "Oh, I get it." Of course, a kid his age wouldn't enjoy traipsing by a body that no one else even wanted to look at. "Do you want me to go get you one?"

Lucas shook his head. "No, I can to get it. But I wanted you to come with me."

Leaf smiled at him. "Of course I will," she said, standing up straight. She glanced back at her dresser hesitantly for a moment before closing her door and walking with Lucas towards the staircase. Before they reached it, they met Pit walking quickly passed them.

"Hey Leaf, hey Lucas," the angel greeted them. "Have either of you seen Pittoo lately?"

They both shook their heads. "No, sorry," Leaf answered.

Pit frowned. "Oh, okay. Well, if you do, mind giving me a holler?" He didn't wait for an answer before continuing on his way. "Thanks!"

"Um, yeah, no problem..." Leaf called after him. She sighed. "Well, let's go get your water."

***

Link was leaning against the wall next to Zelda's door, making a mental list of the people he didn't trust. Most everyone fell into the 'Don't Trust' category, but there were a few notable outliers (number one being Zelda, of course).

Pit was also on the 'Trust' side, along with Lucas and Roy. Lucas and Pit because they were either a child or childlike, and Link couldn't bring himself to think that the boys would harbor any malicious thoughts. Roy because he was just too stupid to try anything. Dark Pit had found a way onto the 'Trust' list as well, although Link felt that decision was slightly biased; he was the only person around that Link actually wanted to trust.

The thought of Pittoo pulled Link's train of thought away from his list. How could he have been so ignorant as to not realize that Pitto liked him? Now that Zelda had said something, it was painfully obvious.

"Hey, listen!" Pit screeched.

Link jumped, having not noticed the angel's arrival. "Pit! You frightened me..."

Pit rolled his eyes. "Sorry, but I said your name like ten times. What were you thinking about? Your face was all weird and sad."

"Was it?"

"Yeah. Were you brooding? Pittoo does that a lot..." Pit trailed off, and then his eyes went wide. "Oh yeah, I wanted to ask you something!"

Link nodded for him to go on.

"I can't find Pittoo anywhere, and I was wondering if you could help me find him."

"He's missing?" Link asked. He realized he might have sounded perhaps too worried, and coughed, returning to his usual calm demeanor. "I mean...that's too bad." He glanced at Zelda's door. "I would really like to help, but I'd rather not leave Zelda all...alone..." He trailed off when he looked back at Pit, whose eyes had grown bigger and looked like they were about to start pouring tears. "Okay, all right, I'll come with you! Just...please don't cry..."

***

Leaf handed Lucas a glass filled with tap water, as she couldn't find any bottled in the fridge. Lucas thanked her and took a sip, but he quickly handed the glass back. "Is there ice anywhere? It's kinda warm..."

Leaf looked around and spotted a walk-in freezer. "I'll look, okay?"

She walked over to the freezer, set the glass down on the counter, and tried to open it. It was tough, but she finally managed to pry the door open. She stepped inside and looked around, but immediately jumped back out when she saw a massive, clawed hand protruding from one of the shelves.

"What is it?" Lucas called from across the kitchen.

"N-nothing, I just...saw a spider!" Leaf lied, peeking back into the freezer.

Bowser's large corpse was laying on a shelf, positioned rather neatly, except for the one arm sticking out. Other than the cadaver, there was nothing else in the freezer, not even a single chunk of ice. As Leaf timidly walked further back into the cold room, she found that it was rather large...easily large enough to contain the bodies of everyone in the mansion.

Lucas was hurried out of the kitchen with his room-temperature water, confused yet happy for the drink. As they made their way back upstairs, Leaf noticed that Luigi's body was now absent. She couldn't help but think of his body now resting beside Bowser's.

***

Pit hummed in frustration as he and Link searched the mansion for Dark Pit. "The only place we haven't searched on this floor is the utility closet," he declared. "He'd better have a really good reason for hiding like this."

Link nodded. "I hope he's just hiding..."

They arrived at the utility closet as Daisy passed them going the opposite way. "If you're looking for Dark Pit, he's in that closet," she told Pit.

"I've been looking for him all day!" Pit exclaimed.

"Oh, I'm sorry..." Daisy said. "I would have told you if I'd seen you earlier, but I've had a lot on my mind..."

Pit shrugged, hand on the closet door handle. "That's okay, I'm just glad we know he's all right now."

"Alrighty! I'm off for tea with a friend," Daisy said as she continued on her way.

Pit flung open the door, and narrowly dodged a mop being launched out towards him. Link, however, was not so fortunate. "Gack!" he exclaimed when the mop hit him in the chest.

"Pittoo! What are you doing in here? It's like, really dark." Pit said, peering into the closet.

Dark Pit had another mop in hand, brandishing it like a sword. "I thrive in darkness," he muttered.

Pit tried to venture further into the closet, but was slapped with the mop instead. "Hey, what was that for?"

"Back off!" Pittoo warned, waving the mop around.

Pit seemed very confused. "...I know you usually don't want people to be around you, but this is a whole new level..."

"You don't understand, Pit...If I touch you, you'll die."

***

After Pittoo explained to Pit his forbidden action, Pit nodded in understanding and promised to try not to come near Pittoo if he could help it. He then told Pittoo and Link 'good night' and left them for his room.

The two that remained found themselves in front of Zelda's door. Link broke the silence stretching between the two with "Why did you lie?"

Dark Pit looked up from the floor sharply. "What?"

Link sighed. "You told him your forbidden action would kill him, but that's not true."

"How would you know that?"

Link pulled out a crumpled letter. "This fell from your robe when you came out of the closet. Er, the utility closet, that is."

Pittoo's face adopted a deep shade of red.

Link shrugged. "It says that if you make any sort of physical contact with Pit, you'll be the one that's poisoned. I would just like to know why you lied to him."

"It may sound like I'm being a selfish jackass, but that's not the way it is at all," Pittoo said. "It's just...Pit isn't nearly as cautious when other people's lives are at stake as he is when his own is on the line. I don't think that's a conscious decision he makes, but it's just what happens...anyways, I told him that so he'd be just a little more careful."

Link nodded. "That's not selfish at all. I think you made the right choice. There's no need for you to recklessly endanger your own life."

Pittoo sighed, leaning against the wall. "It's not my life I'm worried about."

Link frowned. "What do you mean?"

Pittoo looked at Link, half-smiling. "That dipshit would never make it through this 'game' without me. As much as I hate babysitting him, I don't want to see him get hurt. I have to be sure he's being as careful as possible, so I can stay alive to protect him."

Link couldn't help but smile. "That's actually very admirable. I have to be honest, I wasn't expecting to see this side of you—"

Pitto interrupted, face growing red again. "Yeah, well, don't get too used to it..."

And then a scream that didn't belong to Zelda erupted from her room. Link immediately threw all of his weight into the door, breaking it open. He ran in, looking wildly around the entire room, not spotting Zelda. Instead, he found Daisy, who was staring into Zelda's private bathroom in horror. Link slowly walked over to the bathroom door, mentally preparing himself for what was to come.

Alas, nothing could have prepared him for the sight of Zelda laying on the bathroom floor, blood still seeping from a slice in her neck.


End file.
